NUMENOR Chronicles From the Realms Beyond

Only a year after they had released their re-issue of 2015 album Sword and Sorcery, Numenor is already releasing their 3rd full-lenght album Chronicles from the Realms Beyond through Stormspell Records and their success is still, constantly going upwards since the last album was released.

Our first contact with the album has happened with the explosive song Heart of Stone. A unique mixture of Marko’s growls and Zeljko’s high quality singing makes this song a perfect intro to a new record. The second song, Carven Stone, continues with the spirit of the first one with a driving and memorable melody. A lot of fans who have been following the band since the very beginning will find that Colossal Darkness vibe in the third song called Witching Hour, which leads more into the black metal side of the album. Also, a quite interesting part was introducing the female vocals in Beyond the Doors of the Night and Moria. For a moment a had forgot what band I was listening to since I wasn’t used to hearing a female vocal in Numenor, but it actually fits really well into their sound. Great job Sandra! The production of the album is also on a higher level this time. It would be a pleasure hearing these songs live with an orchestra. Over the Mountains Cold, which is already attractive enough for a song title, is also one of the songs that have the similar vibe as the witching hour but conceptually, I feel like it’s continuing the last album’s first single Dragon of Erebor. An ambient and atmospheric introduction to album finale starts with an instrumental Realms Beyond which leads into my personal favorite, The Last of the Dragonlords. This song is a perfect closing to an album since, it contains a little bit of everything, and it’s a perfect presentation of the third album. The song starts with an energetic drum beat and Marko’s explosive vocal. The part where Zeljko starts singing before the chorus kind of reminded me of old Misfits vocals, which really caught my attention. Also, as a bonus, there’s a cover of Blind Guardian’s Valhalla. It’s good to hear a Blind Guardian song with a Numenor sound and vocals. Zeljko has done his part really well and the growling part is quite refreshing. It feels like hearing it for the first time once again. Personally, Chronicles from the Realms Beyond have surpassed my expectations. If you’re a fan of power and black metal, be sure to listen to it.